Technical Field
This invention relates to a wind turbine or wind energy plant and a shaft section of a wind energy plant and a method for designing a wind energy plant.
Description of the Related Art
Wind energy plants or wind turbines are well known and convert wind energy into electrical energy. A typical wind energy plant has a tower with a nacelle on it, which contains an aerodynamic rotor and an electric generator. The nacelle is mounted on a yaw bearing in order to be able to turn on a horizontal plane, so that the angle of the yaw can be adjusted to the wind. This type of yaw bearing has to withstand enormous forces because it has to support the entire nacelle. This type of nacelle can weigh several hundred tons depending on the construction. Wind pressure on the wind energy plant rotor can also add to the load causing a tilting moment, and therefore putting an additional load onto the yaw bearing.
The European patent application EP 1 247 021 B1 shows that segmented, fixed but detachable mounted slide elements can be used for a yaw bearing to counter the effect of a high yaw bearing load so that the slide supports can be easily replaced. This means that repair costs arising from wear to a yaw bearing can be reduced. The cause of wear is, however, not eliminated by doing this.
The German Patent and Trademark Office has researched the following prior art in the priority application for this application: US 2012/0133148 A1 and EP 2 075 464 A2.